Deathly Silence

‘Itna sannata kyun hai bhai?’ (Why is it so (deathly) silent brother?)

The line from the film ‘Sholay’ was mouthed by actor A K Hangal's visually impaired character Rahim Chacha in a scene where silent villagers look on while a horse carries the dead body of his son brutally killed by the dacoit, Gabbar Singh. Hangal who was born on this day in 1914, could well have uttered this line many times in his life.

He was born in Sialkot (now in Pakistan) and grew up in Peshwar. He refused to work with the establishment as he did not want to play mute. Instead, he chose to be a tailor. His political activism made him form a trade union for tailors in Peshawar so that they could speak up. He also found a voice in Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA).

When the partition led to exodus in 1947, he chose to stay in Pakistan. He was arrested and jailed for his leftist ideology. After spending two years in prison, he was asked to leave and go to India. In Mumbai, he got a job as a tailor, and his skill with fabric soon earned him a reputation. He was doing well for himself, but he could not stay silent.

He hunted down IPTA members and rebuild it with the help of Kaifi Azmi and Balraj Sahani The latter and Chetan Anand were fans of his stage work, and coaxed him to join films. At the age of 52, he started off to play roles in 225 films over 40 years. In real life, he remained outspoken even when called a traitor.

The same character of Rahim Chacha says, ‘Izzat ki maut zillat ki zindagi se kahin achchi hai’ (Death with dignity is much better than living with humiliation). A K Hangal chose to be outspoken and paid the price for speaking up. His last days were in dire straits financially but he lived and died with dignity.

So often, we succumb to the pressure of living and we end up playing dead. Silence is our response to every situation that seems intimidating. But such indifference is a sign of the graveyard. We must escape apathy and the deathly silence. We must stand up for the truth. We must choose to be alive and outspoken.

The deathly silence hangs over the shroud
Rise to speak and move out of the crowd!

~ Pravin K. Sabnis